Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival facts for kids
The Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival is a big celebration of South Indian classical music and dance. It happens every year in Cleveland, Ohio, usually around Easter. The festival honors Tyagaraja, a famous composer from South India. He wrote thousands of beautiful songs, mostly in the Telugu language. This festival started in 1978. It has grown to be the largest South Indian classical music and dance festival outside of India. People come from all over the United States, Canada, and other parts of the world to enjoy it.
History of the Festival
How the Festival Started
In the early 1970s, many Indian families lived in Cleveland. They had an informal group called the "Cleveland Bhajan Group." In 1977, Ramnad Raghavan, a famous mridangam artist, moved to Cleveland. He found that many group members had learned music as children. They wanted to start musical activities again.
Ramnad Raghavan suggested starting a Tyagaraja Aradhana in Cleveland. This is a special event to honor Tyagaraja. It is similar to the original one held in Tiruvaiyyar, India. He offered to teach the group Tyagaraja's songs.
Following his idea, V.V. Sundaram, R. Balasubramaniam ("Cleveland Balu"), and Gomathy Balasubramaniam formed a committee. They organized the first Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival.
The first festival was on April 8, 1978. It took place in a rented hall in Richmond Heights, Ohio. It included a group performance of the Pancharathna krithis. These are five special songs by Tyagaraja. People also sang Tyagaraja's songs individually. The evening ended with a concert by Saroja Balasubramaniam. About 75 people attended.
Moving to Cleveland State University
In late 1978, Professor T. Temple Tuttle from Cleveland State University met Ramnad Raghavan. They started working together on projects. Prof. Tuttle suggested moving the festival to the university campus. This would allow more people to attend. Since 1979, the university has been the festival's home.
Starting in 1979, the festival also began inviting musicians from India to perform. This helped attract even larger audiences.
The festival traditionally began with a short prayer (puja). Then, the Cleveland Bhajan Group sang devotional songs (bhajans). After that, everyone, including visiting artists, sang the Pancharathna krithis together. Volunteers prepared a free South Indian lunch for all attendees. Anyone who wanted to perform a Tyagaraja song could do so for five minutes. The day ended with a full concert by a professional musician from India.
How the Festival Grew
The festival was usually held during spring break for local schools. In 1987, it was moved to align with Easter weekend. It has been held then ever since.
The organizing committee would send invitations to Indian families across the US and Canada. The Sundaram and Balasubramaniam families hosted all visiting musicians. They also helped visitors find local families to stay with. These families often hosted strangers for the festival's duration.
For many years, the festival usually had only one concert. Sometimes, it had two or three over Easter weekend. A big change happened in 1992. The festival hosted a jugalbandhi concert. This featured N. Ramani, Mandolin U. Srinivas, and Zakir Hussein. They were joined by A. Kanyakumari and Guruvayoor Dorai. This unique event brought a huge crowd, many of whom were new to the festival.
In later years, the festival also featured famous dancers. These included Kamala and Vyjayanthimala Bali. They also presented dance shows choreographed by Rhadha. These included Jaya Jaya Devi and Lakshmi Prabhavam.
Since then, the festival has regularly featured star musicians and dancers from India. It also commissions new dance shows with original music. These often have their world premiere in Cleveland.
By 2002, the festival had grown to last a whole week. It started after Easter Sunday and continued into the next weekend. It featured many music and dance performances. Famous artists like Nithyasree Mahadevan, Ranjani-Gayatri, Sudha Raghunathan, Lalgudi Jayaraman, and T.M. Krishna have performed.
The festival also became well-known worldwide. Indian television regularly covered it. Media partners also provided live streaming of the event.
In 2019, the main group singing of the Pancharatna Krithi moved. It moved from the Waejten Auditorium to the larger Wolstein Center Indoor stadium. This was because the Waejten Auditorium could no longer hold the growing crowd due to safety rules.
Competitions for Young Talent
Music Competitions
In 1993, the festival started holding a music competition. It was for children and youth across North America. Visiting musicians from India were the judges. The competitions have grown a lot. They are now the largest Carnatic music competition in the United States. In 2016, over 850 people entered.
The competition is open to singers and instrumentalists. This includes percussion players. It has advanced levels for improvisation. These include niraval and kalpana swaram. The two highest level competitions are the "Concert Competition" and "Advanced Pallavi". Winners get a chance to perform at the festival the next year.
Dance Competitions
In 2007, a Bharathanatyam dance competition was added. It started with one age group. The dance competition attracts dancers from all over the world. It has grown to include four age categories. It takes place over two days. Live preliminary rounds are on the first day. Finalists perform on the second day. A grand prize winner is chosen. This winner gets to perform in India during the Chennai December season.
The Festival Today
The Cleveland Thyagaraja Festival now lasts for 12 days. It begins the Wednesday before Easter. Most of the programs are Carnatic music concerts.
The festival features many different musicians. These include star performers, rising young artists, and lesser-known masters. There is a mix of singers and instrumentalists. The committee makes sure to include veena and nadaswaram artists each year. These are traditional instruments. Since 2012, the festival has also featured a few Hindustani concerts.
There are also many dance performances. Most are Bharathanatyam. But other dance forms have also been featured. These include Kuchipudi, Kathak, Kathakali, Mohiniyattam, Odissi, Yakshagana, and Andhra Natyam. Many dance performances are special new works. They have original music and choreography. Examples include the Ramayana (in 5 parts, 2011) and the Mahabharatha (in 5 parts, 2014).
The festival is known for how many children and youth participate. Besides the music and dance competitions, many music schools present concerts. They bring large numbers of their students from across North America. Winners from the music and dance competitions also often perform in shows.
There have also been programs with non-Indian musicians. These include a mix of Indian and Western classical music. There are also Jazz and World Music concerts.
American Talent on Stage
The festival features artists from the US and Canada. Some are musicians who moved from India. Others grew up in North America. They came up through the competitions and other programs. They have become serious performers of music or dance. These artists perform alongside senior musicians from India. They also create and perform their own programs in Cleveland and on tours across the United States.
Learning and Education
Sustaining Sampradaya Program
In 2007, the festival started an educational program called Sustaining Sampradaya. Each year, they choose children from across the US. They go through a six-month training program using video calls. This ends with group performances at the festival in Cleveland. Senior musicians in India teach the students. They learn old songs passed down for centuries.
The committee provides notes for the songs. They also offer recordings of the lessons. You can download them for free from their website. By 2016, lessons for over 300 unique songs were available.
Dance Workshop
Every year, the festival includes a workshop for Indian dance students. It is called Margam. A different dance teacher leads the workshop each year. It covers different dance styles. The workshop is usually for Bharatanatyam. But other dance forms like Kuchipudi and Kathak have also been included.
Expanding to India
Since 2011, the festival committee has also hosted a festival in Chennai, India. This happens during the December music season there. This festival mainly features young American performers of classical music and dance. It also includes musicians based in India.
Through partnerships in India, the committee has helped young Indian-American artists perform. They have performed in Chennai concert halls. They have also appeared on national television programs like Nadaneerajanam. The committee has also worked with media groups to create TV talent shows. These include Carnatic Music Idol USA and Natya Urchavam. These shows help showcase American talent to audiences abroad.
